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Old 07-23-12, 04:26 PM   #1
joedog
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Join Date: Jun 2011
Location: JANESVILLE,WI. 53545
Posts: 3,415
Default Tubing?

I've done the spring tubing on lakes in the spring time, smallies love them.
I've done the hop and drag with traditional tube setup.
I've wieghted T-rigged tubes and crawled them acrosse the bottom.
I've even crashed pads and surface vegation for LG mouths with them.
But I've never really river fished them for bass in mid-summer. So I'm thinking I maybe missing something.

Here's the setup;
Rivers shallow, real shallow. I've walked up river down along one shore a mile and a half and back the opposite side, going upstream and back and going downstream and back both directions with the bridge as starting point. Theres a bridge with four in water pilings, good size but again, shallow, only to about my waist next to pillings and I'm 5'5". I can walk the center of river and reach both shore banks fairly easy with a cast. NO structure except a tracter tire and a half of dozen car tires. No real laydowns and even if there were theyed be in like 5ins. of water seeing the banks are very shallow.
Small rock and gravel mixed with dirt (not silt) from river current bottom through out river and maybe a few spots of vegatation on bottom but rare. Current will float a 1/8 oz. jig about 10-12 yards until it will hit bottom. The slightest twitch of rod will then float jig like 3 ft. 1/4 oz is more secure on bottom and twitching will get you a foot of float. 3/8s may bottom secure better but may disrupt the fall and probably not as effective. I currently feel the float is important.
It's almost like standing next to me at the water giving me ideas.
Sorry about that, felt better description would help eliminate techniques that simply won't work.

Target.....smallmouths.
Present....smallies,Nortern Pike, prevelant
Channel cats are there but not always active ( actually caught a 13 in. channel on a 'Ribbit' top water right as ribbit hit the water)
Walleye and sauger (caught a couple nice ones on a fluke,along with channel cats).
A sheepshead or two with a spinkle of suckers (12in plus size).
Forage.....best I can tell is sunfish, baby bass (I assume other fry too) and some sort of shad looking things that school feed and frequently when present will get numerous BIG surface pike slams.
Big NAT hatch every morning, sky and water full, not talking full, I'm talking FULL of them!

Jig bite and T-rigged lizard bite has flat out been NONE EXISTANT. Trust me I tried....river, current, shallow, warm (for river water)...NOTHING, go figure.

My ideas;
Traditional rig jig and hop it acrosse bottom and around pillings.

Cast and drag tube at shore hopping and dragging it back to center of river.

Texas rig tube wieghted with sliding bullet wieght, unpegged cause I think the jig being able to have some wieghtless action is a plus.

Use a 1/4 oz. stand-up jig with the tube as the plastic? Just thought of that,nows thats thinking outside 'the box'

Ok time for your ideas.
I'm open to almost anything and as you anglers know....I try most.
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Last edited by joedog; 07-23-12 at 04:42 PM.
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Old 07-24-12, 12:49 PM   #2
pittsburghbass
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Join Date: Jul 2011
Posts: 22
Default

I fish on the river almost exclusively, and from my experience, for smallmouth you cant beat a curly tailed grub in green pumpkin on an 1/8 or 1/4 oz jig head. Just cast upstream and let it drift and bounce along the bottom, giving it a tug here and there to free it from rocks.

Tubes are also great, with the same setup and color. Basically any crayfish immitation... they make up a large portion of a river smallmouth's diet!

I've also had success with texas rigged worms, again in green pumpkin. One thing I havent tried yet but always wanted to was bubble gum colored worms. Ive heard thats a great river bait.

Try a few things and let us know how you do!
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